New York Car Accident Laws: No-Fault, Serious Injury, and Your Claim

New York is a no-fault (PIP) state under Insurance Law Article 51, meaning your own insurer pays your medical bills and lost wages first regardless of who caused the crash. To sue the at-fault driver for pain and suffering, your injury must meet the verbal "serious injury" threshold in NY Ins. Law 5102(d). Fault is then apportioned under pure comparative negligence (CPLR 1411), which never bars your recovery.

Is New York a no-fault or at-fault state?

New York is one of the 12 traditional no-fault states and has operated under Insurance Law Article 51 (the Comprehensive Motor Vehicle Insurance Reparations Act) since 1974. After any crash, a person who qualifies as a "covered person" under the statute first files a claim with their own insurer for what the law calls "basic economic loss." That claim is processed and paid without any determination of who caused the accident. The at-fault driver's identity is legally irrelevant to the PIP payout. New York is a true mandatory no-fault state, not a choice or add-on system; the only states that allow drivers to opt out of no-fault are New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Kentucky.

The no-fault system does not eliminate the right to sue, but it restricts it. Under Ins. Law 5104(a), an injured person may not bring a tort action against the at-fault driver to recover non-economic loss (pain, suffering, mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life) unless the injury qualifies as a "serious injury" as defined in Ins. Law 5102(d). Economic losses that exceed the $50,000 PIP cap, such as very large medical bills or extended lost wages, can be recovered in a lawsuit regardless of whether the serious-injury threshold is met. The threshold gates only non-economic (pain and suffering) recovery. New York's no-fault framework is set out in NY Ins. Law 5101 through 5109 and is implemented by the New York State Department of Financial Services.

What qualifies as a serious injury under NY Ins. Law 5102(d)?

The serious-injury threshold is the central gatekeeper of New York car accident litigation. Under Ins. Law 5102(d), a "serious injury" means a personal injury that results in any of the following nine categories: (1) death; (2) dismemberment; (3) significant disfigurement; (4) a fracture; (5) loss of a fetus; (6) permanent loss of use of a body organ, member, function, or system; (7) permanent consequential limitation of use of a body organ or member; (8) significant limitation of use of a body function or system; or (9) a medically determined injury or impairment of a non-permanent nature that prevents the injured person from performing substantially all of the material acts which constitute such person's usual and customary daily activities for not less than 90 days during the 180 days immediately following the occurrence of the injury or impairment.

The most commonly litigated categories are numbers 7, 8, and 9. Courts require objective, quantified medical evidence of limitation. A doctor's conclusory statement that a patient has a "significant limitation" is generally insufficient without measured range-of-motion testing, imaging, and a causal narrative linking the limitation to the crash. The 90/180-day category in particular requires proof that the plaintiff was actually prevented from performing substantially all usual daily activities during the qualifying window, not merely that the injury was painful. Meeting the threshold is a threshold issue that can be resolved on summary judgment, and New York courts dismiss a substantial percentage of car accident tort claims on this basis. If your injuries are serious, documenting them promptly and thoroughly with treating physicians is critical.

How fault is shared: New York's negligence rule

New York follows pure comparative negligence under CPLR 1411, enacted in 1975. Under pure comparative negligence, a plaintiff who is partly at fault for a crash can still recover damages from the at-fault defendant. The plaintiff's total damages are simply reduced in proportion to their own share of fault. There is no cutoff percentage; recovery is never barred no matter how large the plaintiff's share of fault. A plaintiff found 80% at fault recovers 20% of their damages; a plaintiff found 99% at fault still recovers 1%.

This rule is more plaintiff-friendly than the modified-comparative systems used by the majority of states, which bar recovery once the plaintiff's fault reaches 50% or 51%. New York's pure comparative rule means that even a driver who ran a red light and was mostly responsible for a crash may still recover something from the other driver if the other driver also acted negligently. Each defendant's liability is several only for non-economic damages (see CPLR 1601); joint and several liability for economic damages was preserved when CPLR 1601 was enacted. Comparative fault is a question for the jury, and the jury's allocation is then applied mathematically to the damages award.

Minimum car insurance in New York

New York requires every motor vehicle registered in the state to be continuously covered with certain minimum liability coverages before it can be lawfully driven. Under NY Vehicle and Traffic Law 311(4)(a) and Ins. Law 3420(f), the minimum liability limits are $25,000 per person / $50,000 per accident for bodily injury (25/50) and $10,000 per accident for property damage (10). New York also imposes higher minimum limits for death claims: $50,000 for the death of one person and $100,000 for the deaths of two or more persons in a single crash (50/100 death). These death-specific limits mean a policy that satisfies the bodily-injury minimums for living victims may still be required to carry higher limits for wrongful-death exposure.

In addition to liability coverage, every New York policy must include mandatory $50,000 PIP coverage (basic economic loss) under Ins. Law 5102(a). Uninsured Motorist (UM) bodily-injury coverage at 25/50 is also mandatory on every policy per Ins. Law 3420(f)(1); unlike UM/UIM in many states, baseline UM cannot be waived or rejected in New York. Supplementary Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (SUM) coverage, which extends underinsured-motorist protection up to the policyholder's own BI limits, must be offered by the insurer under Ins. Law 3420(f)(2) and can be purchased or declined. SUM coverage is valuable because it allows a seriously injured victim to collect the difference between what the at-fault driver's policy pays and the victim's own SUM limit, up to that SUM limit, when the at-fault driver's insurance is insufficient to compensate the full loss.

How long you have to file: the statute of limitations

The general statute of limitations for personal injury claims, including car accident negligence cases, is 3 years in New York under CPLR 214(5). The clock starts on the date of the accident. Property-damage claims carry the same 3-year limit under CPLR 214(4). Wrongful-death actions have a separate 2-year limitations period under EPTL 5-4.1, measured from the date of death.

Three years is a reasonable window, but waiting too long creates serious practical problems: witnesses forget details, medical records become harder to obtain, vehicles are repaired or scrapped, and the case becomes harder to prove. If your injury meets the serious-injury threshold and you are considering a lawsuit, contacting an attorney well before the 3-year mark allows time for investigation and demand negotiations before any litigation deadline pressure. Also note that claims against New York State, New York City, or other government entities require a notice of claim filed within 90 days of the incident under Court of Claims Act section 10 (for state claims) or General Municipal Law section 50-e (for municipal claims). Missing the notice-of-claim deadline can permanently bar the case against a government defendant even if the 3-year civil-court deadline has not run.

For more on New York's civil limitation rules across case types, see our New York statute of limitations page.

What a New York car accident claim is worth

The value of a New York car accident claim depends heavily on whether your injuries clear the serious-injury threshold of Ins. Law 5102(d), because that threshold determines whether non-economic damages are on the table at all. If your injuries do not meet the threshold, your practical recovery is limited to economic losses above the $50,000 PIP cap, which is relevant mainly in high-cost medical situations. If your injuries do meet the threshold, non-economic damages including pain and suffering, mental anguish, loss of consortium, and loss of enjoyment of life become available, and those damages can be substantial in serious cases involving permanent limitations, fractures, or disfigurement.

Economic damages recoverable in a lawsuit include medical expenses exceeding PIP, future medical care, lost earnings above the PIP 80% / $2,000-per-month cap, future loss of earning capacity, and other out-of-pocket costs. Once all damages are totaled, New York's pure comparative negligence rule reduces your recovery by your percentage of fault. Available insurance then sets a practical ceiling: a defendant with only the minimum 25/50 limits may not be able to fully compensate a seriously injured plaintiff, making the plaintiff's own SUM coverage a critical safety net. Umbrella policies held by the defendant, if any, can provide additional layers. Punitive damages are available in egregious cases (drunk driving, reckless conduct), but they require a high legal standard and are rare.

Use our New York car accident settlement calculator to model how PIP, the serious-injury threshold, comparative fault, and insurance limits interact for your specific situation.

What to do after a car accident in New York

Taking the right steps immediately after a New York crash protects both your health and your legal rights under the no-fault and tort systems.

Stop and secure the scene. New York law requires you to stop at the scene of any crash involving injury, death, or property damage and to exchange identifying information (NY Veh. & Traf. Law 600). Leaving the scene of an injury accident is a felony. If anyone is injured, call 911 and do not move injured persons unless there is an immediate danger.

Report the crash. Under NY Veh. & Traf. Law 605, you must report a crash resulting in injury, death, or property damage exceeding $1,000 to the DMV within 10 days using the MV-104 form. A police report filed at the scene satisfies the report requirement if the officer provides you with a copy. Keep your copy; it is essential for insurance claims and litigation.

Seek medical care within 30 days. For PIP purposes, you must seek initial medical treatment within 30 days of the crash or your PIP benefits may be denied (11 NYCRR 65-1.1). More importantly, prompt medical evaluation creates a contemporaneous record of your injuries, which is critical for proving the serious-injury threshold if your case later proceeds to litigation. Gap in treatment is one of the most common reasons courts grant summary judgment against plaintiffs on the threshold issue.

Document everything at the scene. Photograph all vehicles, injuries, road conditions, traffic controls, and skid marks. Get the names, addresses, phone numbers, and insurance information of all drivers and witnesses. If there is a dashcam in your vehicle or the other vehicle, preserve that footage immediately, as it may be overwritten within hours.

Notify your own insurer and file a PIP claim promptly. Your no-fault PIP claim must be submitted to your own insurer within 30 days of the accident, and your insurer must receive written notice within 30 days under 11 NYCRR 65-1.1. Missed PIP deadlines can forfeit benefits. Your insurer will assign a no-fault claim number and begin processing bills and lost-wage claims.

Do not give a recorded statement to the other driver's insurer without consulting an attorney first. Adjusters for the opposing carrier are trained to elicit statements that reduce or eliminate claims. New York's no-fault and serious-injury rules are complex, and even an offhand comment about your activities can be used to argue you did not satisfy the 90/180-day disability category. An attorney consultation before accepting any settlement is strongly advisable for any injury that may meet the serious-injury threshold.

This article is general legal information, not legal advice. Car accident law varies by state and changes, and settlement values depend on the specific facts. For advice about a specific crash, consult a licensed attorney in New York.

Related pages:

• New York Car Accident Settlement Calculator
• New York Hit-and-Run Laws
• Car Accident Laws by State: Hub
• New York Statute of Limitations

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